In a desperate bid, no doubt, to recoup his losses from Joan of Arc, Luc Besson dashed off a script for this spectacularly dumb but sneakily entertaining sequel to the daft hit French 1998 action comedy. Those in Britain who view the French as sophisticated and tolerant may need to revise their opinion, with this gleefully racist story about the kidnapping of a top Japanese diplomat during an official visit to Marseilles. Back from Taxi 1, Samy Naceri gets up a head of silly steam as the speeding taxi driver, who saves the day with the help of his pal the inspector (Frederic Diefenthal) and a madcap general (a gloriously overacting Jean-Christophe Bouvet in a show-stealing turn). Like the taxi, the film's 80-plus minutes whiz by at the speed of light, and, along with the wacky farcical performances, there are some thrilling stunts, crashes and pile-ups in best Blues Brothers fashion. Put your brain in neutral and you'll enjoy the taxi's cruise in top gear.